Ceremonies. . .Moore1 s  Creek 
Battle  Ground  -  1907 


€&e  Liorarp 

offyt 

canitjet0itp  of  jeottft  Carolina 


Collection  of  j|2ott&  Catoliniana 
from  tfie  Eiotarp  of 


Ceremonies 

a<  th: 

Unveiling  of  the  Monument 


eiling  x>: 


UPON 


MOORE'S  CREEK  BATTLE 
GROUND 

To  ike 

WOMEN  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

AUGUST,  1907 

Speeches  of 

Hon.  E.  A.  HAWES 
Hon.  JAMES  R  MOORE 
Hon.  CHARLES  R.  THOMAS 


-V 


HON.  E.  A.  HAWES'  SPEECH  OF  PRESENTATION. 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

It  is  my  pleasure  and  privilege  in  behalf  of  the  building 
committee  of  the  Moore's  Creek  Battle  Ground  Association 
to  present  this  monument,  erected  to  the  heroic  women  of 
the  Revolution.  The  battles  of  war,  apparently,  have  always 
fallen  upon  men,  so  monuments  to  heroes  skilled  in  wielding 
the  sword  are  nothing  uncommon.  But  there  is  something 
peculiarly  singular  in  connection  with  this  monument  we 
have  met  here  today  to  unveil.  In  reading  history  I  have 
never  yet  learned  of  a  single  instance  where  a  monument 
stands  upon  a  battlefield  in  the  name  of  woman.  But  I  am 
glad  this  association  has  seen  fit  to  have  the  inscriptions  read 
as  they  do.  While  comparatively  few  women  have  their 
names  as  a  connecting  link  in  the  chain  of  history  as  Mrs. 
Slocomb,  still  they  play  their  parts  nobly  at  home.  Thus 
fitting  tributes  should  be  paid  them. 

The  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  Bridge  was  no  small  event 
in  the  Revolutionary  war.  In  the  words  of  Dr.  C.  Alphonso 
Smith :  "It  was  the  Rubicon  over  which  North  Carolina 
passed  to  independence  and  to  constitutional  self-govern- 
ment. The  old  monument  with  the  names  of  Richard  Cas- 
well and  Alexander  Lillington,  darkened  by  the  duration  of 
time,  vividly  recalls  such  men  as  James  Moore,  John  Ashe 
and  James  Kenan  as  leaders  of  the  Colonial  troops.  Thus 
this  granite  slab  in  recognition  of  women  will  recall,  too, 
one  of  the  most  potent  factors  of  war.  When  just  recog- 
nition to  the  heroes  of  the  lower  Cape  Fear  has  been  given, 
their  names  will  have  transcended  into  a  part  of  national 
song  story.     The  monuments  standing  proudly  upon  this 

<n 


battlefield  in  the  name  of  martyrs  will  not  be  to  those  gone 
by,  but  to  the  ever  living  and  the  ever  loved. 

On  this  green  bank,  by  this  soft  stream, 

We  set  today  a  votive  stone ; 
That  memory  may  their  deed  redeem 

When  like  our  sires  our  sons  are  gone. 

Spirit  that  made  those  heroes  dare 
To  die  and  leave  their  children  free, 

Bid  Time  and  Nature  gently  spare, 
The  shaft  we  raise  to  them  and  thee. 


HON.  JAMES  F.  MOORE'S  SPEECH  OF  ACCEPTANCE. 

Gentlemen  of  the  Building  Committee : 

It  is  with  feelings  of  mingled  pleasure  and  pride  that  I, 
on  behalf  of  the  Moore's  Creek  Monumental  Association 
and  the  State  of  North  Carolina,  accept  from  you  this 
beautiful  memorial  to  our  Revolutionary  women. 

I  also  accept  and  thank  you,  for  the  repair  of  this  old 
monument. 

I  fully  appreciate  the  efforts  of  the  committee  to  record 
and  transmit  to  future  generations  the  history  of  an  heroic 
and  honorable  past. 

Gentlemen,  I  am  well  aware,  that  it  is  the  fulfilment  of 
an  untiring  work  on  your  part,  and  so  far  as  my  knowledge 
extends,  this  memorial  to  our  Revolutionary  women,  is  the 
first  in  the  State  of  North  Carolina  to  be  dedicated  to  such  a 
purpose. 

We  have  now,  on  this  sacred  old  battlefield,  two  monu- 
ments, one  erected  1857  to  the  heroes  of  the  battle  of 
Moore's  Creek,  the  American  patriots;  the  other  dedicated 
today  to  the  heroic  women  of  that  eventful  period.  In  all 
of  the  great  achievements  of  man,  woman  has  ever  been 
ready  to  perform  her  part. 

There  is  no  higher  duty  devolving  upon  us  as  members 
of  the  Moore's  Creek  Monument  Association,  than  to  pre- 
serve the  names  of  our  patriotic  men  and  noble  women,  and 
it  should  be  the  constant  aim  of  the  Association  to  make  this 
battlefield,  as  it  deserves  to  be,  famous  in  American  history, 
so  that  a  visit  to  it  may  re-enkindle  the  fires  of  patriotism 
which  actuated  our  forefathers. 

Gentlemen  of  the  Association,  to  your  care,  and  to  your 
protection,  do  I  now  commend  these  sentinels  of  liberty  and 


patriotism,  which  bear  testimony  of  arduous  struggles  of 
our  brave  ancestors;  and  as  the  cycles  of  time  shall  sweep 
over  future  generations,  may  the  young  of  both  sexes  on 
reading  these  inscriptions,  emulate  the  noble  sentiments 
which  governed  those  heroes  and  heroines  of  the  American 
Revolution. 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen,  let  us  cast  our  eyes  above  and 
behold  the  flag  of  our  commonwealth,  let  us  ever  remem- 
ber that  North  Carolina  was  the  first  of  the  thirteen  original 
colonies  to  declare  for  separation  and  independence. 

We  can  not  too  often  repeat  that  Hilton,  a  few  miles  be- 
low here,  on  the  banks  of  the  lower  Cape  Fear,  was  the  birth 
place  and  cradle  of  American  liberty. 

The  heroic  actions  of  the  patriots  of  North  Carolina  be- 
fore and  during  the  Revolution  should  be  studied,  by  every 
reader  of  our  nation's  history. 

Last,  but  not  least,  let  us  love  and  cherish  the  beautiful 
stars  and  stripes  which  so  proudly  float  over  our  battlefield 
today,  and  we  should  ever  be  willing  and  ready  to  assemble 
ourselves  under  the  folds  of  that  flag,  and  pay  homage  to 
the  American  patriot,  whose  sacrifices  and  bravery  have 
given  to  us  the  grandest  country  in  all  the  world. 


SPEECH  OF  HON.  CHARLES  R.  THOMAS, 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen,  Fellow  Citizens  of  the 

County  of  Pender  and  the  Cape  Fear  Section: 

I  rejoice  with  you  exceedingly  in  the  advent  of 
this  momentous  occasion ;  this  glorious  day  in  the  history 
of  Pender  County  and  the  Cape  Fear  Section  of  North 
Carolina,  upon  which  we  are  again  celebrating  the  Battle 
of  Moore's  Creek.  I  especially  rejoice  that  we  are  here 
today  to  celebrate  the  completion  of  the  work  of  the  Moore's 
Creek  Monumental  Association,  in  the  repairs  of  the  monu- 
ment around  which  we  have  so  often  assembled  in  former 
days,  the  improvement  of  the  battlefield  and  the  erection  of 
this  beautiful  new  shaft  to  the  heroic  women  of  the  Revolu- 
tion of  the  Cape  Fear  Section. 

For  many  years,  in  fact,  ever  since  the  County  of  Pender 
has  been  a  part  of  the  Third  Congressional  District,  which 
it  is  my  honor  and  privilege  to  represent,  I  have  longed  to  see 
this  glorious  and  auspicious  day.  In  connection  with  the 
Moore's  Creek  Monumental  Association,  the  citizens  of 
Pender  County  and  Cape  Fear  North  Carolina,  and  the 
Senator,  Honorable  James  F.  Moore,  and  the  Member  of 
the  Legislature  from  Pender  County,  Honorable  A.  H. 
Wells,  and  other  citizens  of  Pender  County,  I  have  labored 
by  day  and  night,  in  season  and  out  of  season  and  at  all 
times,  determined  to  bring  our  hopes  and  desires  in  regard 
to  this  monument  and  battlefield  to  a  successful  fruition 
and  termination.  I  congratulate  the  members  of  the  Monu- 
mental Association,  all  those  who  have  interested  themselves 
in  this  battlefield,  and  myself,  upon  the  success  of  this 
great  and  important  work  of  commemorating  for  all  genera- 
tions the  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  and  the  heroic  men  and 
women  of  this  section  of  North  Carolina. 


Gentlemen  of  the  Monumental  Association,  you  have  per- 
formed your  work  well  and  the  State  of  North  Carolina 
through  its  annual  appropriation  secured  by  Pender's  mem- 
ber of  the  Legislature  and  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States  have  shown  their  appreciation  of  your  labors.  Very 
much  credit  for  the  success  of  the  movement  to  fitly  com- 
memorate the  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  should  be  given  to 
Senator  James  F.  Moore,  Mr.  Wells,  your  member  of  the 
Legislature  and  the  members  of  the  Moore's  Creek  Monu- 
mental Association. 

This  day,  fellow  citizens,  is  of  more  than  local  interest 
and  importance.  This  battlefield  now  having  secured  both 
national  and  state  recognition  will  be  handed  down  to  future 
generations  in  the  laws  of  our  State  and  Nation  as  among 
the  most  important  battlefields  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution. 
No  longer  can  a  distinguished  Senator  from  Massachusetts 
or  any  other  state  show  a  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  history 
of  their  country,  and  the  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  will  take 
the  place  in  history  it  deserves  as  the  first  victory  and  one 
of  the  most  important  victories  of  the  war  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. These  monuments  upon  this  battlefield,  one  to  the 
heroes  who  fought  here  on  February  27,  1776,  and  one 
to  the  women  of  this  section  will  stand  for  all  times  point- 
ing heavenward,  as  incentives  to  the  people  of  North  Caro- 
lina, and  especially  our  young  men  and  women  to  higher 
aspirations  in  our  individual  and  national  life.  Plutarch 
said :  "It  was  a  custom  of  the  Romans  to  erect  monuments 
to  the  most  celebrated  and  distinguished  citizens  and  to  carve 
upon  each  monument  the  illustrious  achievements  of  him  in 
whose  honor  the  monument  was  erected.  These  monuments 
were  set  upon  a  hill  and  the  Roman  youth  were  bidden  by 
their  parents  to  study  the  lives  of  their  distinguished  ances- 
tors as  they  saw  them  carved  in  marble  and  they  were  told 
that  they  too  would  have  a  life  monument  erected  to  them 
and  the    record    of    their    life    work    carved    upon    it,  if 


they  emulated  the  virtues  and  practiced  the  example  of  those 
who  had  gone  before.  All  of  the  nations  of  the  world  com- 
memorate by  statues  and  monuments  those  events  in  their 
history  which  have  led  to  independence  or  marked  epochs 
in  their  life. 

The  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  Bridge,  the  first  victory  of  the 
War  of  the  Revolution  has  not  received  in  the  history  of  our 
country  its  just  rank,  nor  has  it  been  heralded  to  the 
world  as  the  battlefields  of  New  England,  and  yet  the  battle 
of  Moore's  Creek  was  as  important  as  any  conflict  between 
the  Colonists  and  the  British  upon  New  England  soil.  All 
true-hearted  Americans  take  a  just  pride  in  the  glorious 
achievements  of  New  England  and  the  great  battles  fought 
upon  her  soil  and  the  memory  of  Concord  and  Bunker  Hill 
and  of  Lexington,  "Where  once  the  embattled  farmers  stood 
and  fired  the  shot  heard  round  the  world,"  are  a  part  of  the 
glorious  heritage  of  the  whole  country.  What  the  battle 
of  Lexington  was  to  the  Northern  Colonies,  the  battle  of 
Moore's  Creek  was  to  the  Southern  Colonies.  The  British 
were  preparing  to  invade  the  province  of  North  Carolina 
and  suppress  the  spirit  of  independence  which  was  more 
forward  in  this  province  than  in  any  of  her  sisters. 

Referring  to  my  own  speech  delivered  in  the  House  of 
Representatives  on  January  12,  1904,  upon  the  subject  of 
Moore's  Creek  Battlefield  Monument,  the  appropriation  for 
which  I  subsequently  secured,  and  to  the  account  of  the 
battle  as  contained  in  the  Life  and  Correspondence  of  James 
Iredell,  I  want  to  present  to  your  minds  a  picture  of  this 
battle  and  this  illustrious  event  in  the  history  of  North 
Carolina  and  our  common  country. 

McRee  says  in  his  life  of  Iredell,  it  was  on  the  10th  of 
January,  1776,  from  on  board  His  Majesty's  Sloop  "Scor- 
pion," in  Cape  Fear  River,  Governor  Martin,  issued  his 
Proclamation,  declaring  a  state  of  rebellion;  that  he  had 


erected  the  Royal  Standard;  and  summoning  all  good  sub- 
jects to  rally  to  its  support.  On  the  5th  of  February,  Donald 
McDonald,  Brigadier  General  of  His  Majesty's  forces  in 
North  Carolina,  issued  a  Proclamation,  calling  upon  all  loyal 
citizens  to  repair  to  the  Royal  Banner,  in  accordance  with  the 
Governor's  Proclamation.  McDonald's  troops  were  to  meet 
the  Governor  at  Brunswick,  on  the  15th  of  February.  Sir 
Henry  Clinton,  Commander-in-Chief,  was  expected  from 
New  York,  Lord  Wm.  Campbell  from  South  Carolina,  and 
Sir  Peter  Parker  at  the  head  of  a  squadron.  The  whole, 
united,  were  to  advance  into  the  interior,  and  crush  the 
province  of  North  Carolina.  The  Highlanders  were  soon 
assembled  to  the  number  of  two  or  three  thousand;  they 
were  animated  with  the  hope  of  retrieving  the  past,  but  a  re- 
morseless fate  was  dogging  the  steps  of  these  doomed  men 
with  a  pertinacity  surpassing  that  of  their  own  "sleuth 
hound."  One  of  their  leaders  was  the  husband  of  the  cele- 
brated Flora  McDonald,  whose  services  to  their  fallen  prince 
invested  her  in  their  eyes  with  a  sacred  character;  her 
presence  in  their  camp,  and  her  counsel,  enforced  by  the 
charms  of  beauty  and  wit,  exalted  their  courage  into  enthu- 
siam.  Though  ultimately  trodden  into  the  dust  by  the  armed 
heel  of  the  British,  yet  could  they  recall  occasions  when 
their  impetuous  spirit  had  borne  them,  a  resistless  torrent, 
over  the  broken  hosts  of  England.  They,  as  soldiers,  had 
been  truly  baptized  in  fire  and  blood;  were  renowned  by 
their  use  of  the  claymore  as  the  best  swordsmen  in  the 
world,  and  now,  certainly  on  the  strong  side,  were  flushed 
with  the  prestige  of  victory  that  attached  to  the  meteor 
flag  of  St.  George.  They  were  marshalled  by  regular  offi- 
cers, and  could  not  but  feel  some  contempt  for  the  raw,  un- 
disciplined militia  of  the  Province.  Evading  the  vigilance 
of  General  Moore,  and  crossing  to  the  left  bank  of  Cape 
Fear,  they  moved  rapidly  down  the  road  to  Moore's  Creek. 


9 


About  seventeen  miles  from  Wilmington,  Moore's  Creek 
was,  as  now,  spanned  by  a  small  bridge.  The  creek  is  nar- 
row, but  deep.  About  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  from 
the  bridge  on  the  afternoon  of  the  26th  of  February,  Colo- 
nels Lillington  and  Ashe,  at  the  head  of  a  detachment  of 
the  Wilmington  Minute  Men  and  New  Hanover  Volunteer 
Rangers,  had  taken  their  post,  determined  to  contest  the 
passage  of  the  Celts.  They  hastily  threw  up  an  intrench- 
ment  at  right  angles  with  the  road;  two  small  field-pieces 
were  placed  in  the  center  so  as  to  sweep  the  bridge;  their 
flanks  were  protected  by  the  swamp  skirting  the  Creek.  Sub- 
sequently, Col.  Caswell  came  up,  and  finding  the  front 
already  occupied,  drew  up  his  forces  in  the  rear  in  a  sec- 
ond line.  The  whole  American  force  amounted  to  about 
one  thousand  men  and  consisted  of  forces  from  New  Han- 
over, under  Lillington  and  Ashe,  and  of  the  Minute  Men 
from  Duplin,  Craven,  Johnston  and  Wake  Counties,  and  a 
Battalion  from  New  Bern. 

The  Whigs  were  not  in  military  costume,  but  clad  in 
simple  homespun;  in  their  hands  were  no  muskets  whose 
bayonets  gleamed  in  the  sunshine,  but  long  single-barrelled 
shot  guns  and  rifles,  whose  range  had  often  been  proved 
in  the  deer  hunt. 

About  daybreak,  on  the  27th,  the  Highlanders  came  in 
sight  of  their  antagonists,  and  the  bag-pipes  resounded  upon 
the  frosty  air  of  the  morning.  They  rapidly  formed  into  a 
storming  column,  with  a  forlorn  hope  of  seventy-five  picked 
men  in  front;  their  General  being  sick,  Colonel  Donald 
McLeod  took  the  command.  The  planks  of  the  bridge  had 
been  hastily  removed.  Their  way  was  effectually  barred. 
Fight  they  must.  They  were  celebrated  for  their  dashing 
onset.  At  the  word  of  command,  they  passed  the  bridge, 
and  rushed  forward  with  the  force  of  the  hurricane.  Though 
shattered  by  the  fire  of  the  cannon,  they  closed  up  their 
broken  ranks  and  pressed  onward,  as  if  to  assured  victory, 


10 


while  loud  cheers  accompanied  their  advance;  but  now  was 
heard  the  voice  of  Lillington,  and  a  sheeted  flame  blazed 
along  the  American  line,  attended  with  a  report  as  of  thun- 
der when  it  rattles  amid  the  mountain  crags.  There  was  a 
moment  of  awful  silence,  in  which  the  wind  lifted  the  smoke 
as  a  curtain,  from  that  stage  of  death.  Seldom  has  there 
been  disclosed  to  human  eye  a  more  appalling  spectacle  of 
carnage.  In  front  were  the  dead,  the  dying,  and  the  wound- 
ed— the  background  crowded  with  panic-stricken  fugitives. 
Fifty  were  killed,  among  whom  were  Col.  McLeod  and  Capt. 
Campbell.  Fifteen  hundred  rifles;  three  hundred  and  fifty 
guns  and  shot  bags ;  one  hundred  and  fifty  swords  and  dirks ; 
two  medicine  chests  worth  $1,500,  thirteen  wagons  with 
complete  sets  of  horses,  and  75,000  pounds  sterling  in  cash 
constituted  the  booty.  Eight  hundred  and  fifty  common  sol- 
diers, General  McDonald,  and  many  officers  were  captured. 
Thus  was  won  in  North  Carolina,  by  North  Carolina  men, 
the  first  great,  undoubted  triumph  of  the  American  arms. 
This  gallant  achievement  entirely  disconcerted  the  well- 
organized  plans  of  the  intended  campaign ;  and  North  Caro- 
lina had  the  honor  to  be  the  first  of  the  provinces  to  repel 
the  foe  from  her  borders.  The  truth  is  that  North  Carolina 
never  permitted  the  British  to  remain  upon  her  soil.  As 
at  Moore's  Creek  Bridge  she  repelled  the  first  invasion  of 
her  soil  with  North  Carolina  troops  alone,  so  at  King's 
Mountain  she  repelled  with  the  aid  of  her  neighbors,  Vir- 
ginia and  South  Carolina,  the  second  invasion  of  her  soil. 
I  am  glad  to  say  that  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
by  the  action  of  the  Committee  of  Congress,  of  which  I  have 
the  honor  to  be  a  member,  has  provided  for  a  monument 
upon  the  King's  Mountain  battlefield  as  well  as  upon 
the  Moore's  Creek  battlefield.  There  is  interwoven 
with  the  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  other  most  important  events 
in  the  history  of  North  Carolina,  and  of  the  nation.  Not 
only  was  this  battle  fought  by  heroic  men  from  this  section 


11 


of  the  state,  but  by  this  battle  and  others  of  the  Revolu- 
tion in  which  my  state  participated,  imperishable  glory  and 
renown  have  been  conferred  upon  North  Carolina.  The 
history  of  the  great  achievements  of  North  Carolina  in  the 
War  of  the  Revolution  have  been  unjustly  neglected  or 
obscured  by  the  writers  of  history,  and  her  people  have  been 
oftentimes  too  modest  to  assert  the  rights  to  which  they  were 
entitled  in  respect  to  great  events.  North  Carolinians  are 
content  "to  be,  rather  than  to  seem"  to  achieve,  rather  than 
to  boast  of  what  they  have  achieved ;  but  the  history  of  North 
Carolina,  while  not  so  well  known  as  the  history  of  New 
England  is  inseparable  from  the  early  settlement  of  our 
country  and  the  history  of  the  War  of  the  Revolution. 
It  is  needless  for  me  to  recall  to  your  minds  that  North  Caro- 
lina was  one  of  the  foremost  and  staunchest  of  the  colo- 
nies in  the  Revolutionary  struggles  and  furnished  more  than 
her  quota  of  men  and  eminent  commanders,  not  only  in  that 
war,  but  in  all  subsequent  wars  in  which  the  nation  has 
been  involved.  During  the  Revolution  North  Carolina  was 
frequently  overrun  by  British  invaders  who,  however,  were 
repelled  with  great  slaughter  whenever  an  engagement  took 
place.  The  battles  of  Alamance,  Moore's  Creek,  Guilford 
Courthouse  and  King's  Mountain,  attest  the  fighting  quali- 
ties of  her  heroes  in  the  Revolution.  Upon  the  battlefield  in 
that  war  the  record  of  North  Carolina  is  among  the  fore- 
most. During  the  Mexican  War  the  contribution  of  North 
Carolina  to  the  National  army  was  largely  in  excess  of  the 
average  both  in  numbers  and  quality.  In  the  Civil  War  she 
was  first  at  Bethel,  last  at  Appomattox,  and  farthest  up  the 
heights  at  Gettysburg.  In  the  war  with  Spain  one  of  her 
sons,  Worth  Bagley,  was  the  first  officer  killed,  giving  up  bis 
young  life  as  a  sacrifice  to  the  nation,  falling  at  Cardenas 
wrapped  in  the  folds  of  "Old  Glory,"  and  it  was  the  gallant 
William  E.  Shipp  who  fought  side  by  side  with  the  Presi- 
dent of  our  country,  Theodore  Roosevelt,  at  San  Juan  Hill. 


12 


That  war  with  Spain  cemented  the  ties  between  the  North 
and  the  South,  and  the  soldiers  of  the  North  and  South 
marched  shoulder  to  shoulder  in  a  common  cause  for  the 
liberation  of  Cuba  and  for  its  independence,  and  protec- 
tion from  Spanish  tyranny;  and  by  it  much  of  the 
feeling"  and  passion  engendered  by  the  great  civil  war 
was  obscured  and  obliterated.  But,  fellow  citizens,  how- 
ever brave  may  have  been  the  heroes  of  that  war  with 
Spain,  among  all  the  North  Carolinians  who  have  fought 
and  bled  for  their  country  in  any  war  in  which  we  have  been 
engaged,  these  heroes  of  my  section  and  your  section  of 
North  Carolina  who  faced  the  British  in  1776,  upon  this 
battlefield  of  Moore's  Creek,  were  among  the  noblest,  truest 
and  bravest.  The  forces  of  the  Colonies  at  Moore's  Creek 
led  by  Caswell,  the  first  Governor  of  North  Carolina,  and 
by  Lillington,  won  a  victory  unparalleled  in  its  value  and  im- 
portance by  any  similar  battle.  Much  has  been  said  and 
written  as  to  whether  Caswell  or  Lillington  is  entitled  to  the 
credit  for  leadership  and  for  the  victory.  I  have  endeavored 
to  present  the  facts  as  I  have  gathered  them  from  history. 
Both  were  there,  and  if  Caswell  arrived  upon  the  scene  later 
than  Lillington,  or  if  Lillington  was  in  the  rear,  it  makes  no 
difference  for  there  was  glory  enough  for  all.  According 
to  the  inscription  upon  the  old  monument  only  one  man 
was  killed  upon  the  American  side,  John  Grady,  of  the 
good  County  of  Duplin.  The  inscriptions  upon  the  old 
monument  are  as  follows : 


"In  Commemoration  of  the  Battle  of  Moore's 
Creek  Bridge,  Fought  Here  February  27th,  1776. 
The  first  victory  gained  by  the  American  Arms  In 
the  War  of  the  Revolution. 

Caswell — 

Lillington — 
Here  lie  the  remains  of  Private  John  Grady,  of 


13 


Duplin  County,  who  fell  bravely  fighting  for  his 
Country. 

"The  first  martyr  in  the  cause  of  freedom  in 
North  Carolina,  and  the  only  Whig  killed  in  this 
Battle." 

As  at  the  battle  of  Alamance,  North  Carolina  in  advance  of 
all  other  colonies  called  upon  the  nation  to  resist  British 
tyranny  and  lighted  the  fires  of  patriotism  which  resulted 
in  the  independence  of  the  country,  so  at  the  battle  of 
Moore's  Creek  Bridge,  North  Carolina  stemmed  the  tide  of 
British  invasion  in  the  southern  colonies  and  gave  fresh 
hope  to  the  patriots  of  the  north. 

Following  this  battle  came  the  Congress  at  Halifax,  April 
12,  1776,  in  which  North  Carolina  declared  her  independ- 
ence through  her  Congress  assembled  there,  and  also  fol- 
lowing it  came  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence 
July  4th  of  the  same  year.  No  one  of  the  heroes  who  fought 
here  ever  flinched  from  the  call  of  duty,  and  all  deserve  and 
should  receive  now  and  for  all  time  the  thanks  of  their 
grateful  and  appreciative  descendants  and  fellow  country- 
men. Let  this  monument  to  them  pointing  heavenward,  be 
an  incentive  to  future  generations  of  North  Carolina  and 
the  Cape  Fear  section,  and  the  citizens  of  the  whole  nation, 
and  let  it  be  an  altar  of  freedom  where  we  may  kindle  afresh 
the  fires  of  patriotism  should  they  ever  begin  to  expire.  The 
descendants  of  the  men  who  fought  here  while  they  honor 
and  respect  the  nation  and  fight  in  its  defense  and  for  its 
flag,  will  never  submit  to  injustice  and  oppression  from  any 
source,  nor  permit  their  rights  to  be  invaded  by  partisan 
decrees  of  Federal  Courts,  or  by  those  individuals  or  cor- 
porations who  would  arrogantly  attempt  to  over-ride  and 
ignore  the  just  laws  of  the  State. 

Robert  B.  Glenn,  the  Governor  of  North  Carolina,  must 
have  in  his  veins  some  of  the  spirit  which  dominated  the 


14 


patriots  who  fought  upon  this  battlefield  more  than  a  century 
ago. 

But,  fellow  citizens,  I  am  especially  delighted  today  in  the 
fact  that  the  Moore's  Creek  Monumental  Association,  after 
I  had  secured  the  appropriation  from  Congress  with  the  aid 
of  Senator  Overman,  in  the  United  States  Senate,  in  ad- 
dition to  the  repairs  of  the  old  monument,  decided  to  erect 
here  another  monument  to  the  heroic  women  of  the  Revolu- 
tion of  the  Cape  Fear  Section,  who  so  justly  deserve  a  place 
in  history  side  by  side  with  the  heroic  men  whose  battle  cry 
was  "Liberty  or  Death."  This  battle  is  connected  with  the 
history  of  two  most  charming  women,  Flora  McDonald  and 
Mary  Slocumb.  Flora  McDonald  was  the  wife  of  Allan 
McDonald,  a  relative  of  General  McDonald,  who  led  the 
Tory  forces.  It  was  this  noble  and  beautiful  girl  who  saved 
the  life  of  Charles  Edward  Stuart,  "Bonnie  Prince 
Charlie,"  after  the  defeat  of  the  Scotchmen  and  followers  of 
the  House  of  Stuart,  at  the  Battle  of  Culloden.  Mary 
Slocumb  was  the  wife  of  Lieutenant  Slocumb  of  the  Patriot 
Army.  She  has  many  descendants  scattered  throughout  this 
entire  section  of  North  Carolina,  who  honor  and  revere  her 
memory.  Her  son  served  in  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States,  representing  the  district  which  I  now  represent,  and 
her  brother,  Charles  Hooks,  was  also  a  member  of  the  Con- 
gress of  the  United  States,  representing  the  Wilmington 
District.  This  separate  shaft,  fellow  citizens,  erected  upon 
this  battlefield  in  memory  of  the  heroic  women  of  the  Cape 
Fear,  white  and  pure  and  stainless  as  the  good  women  it 
commemorates,  is  the  first  recognition  so  far  as  I  am  in- 
formed of  the  women  of  the  Revolutionary  period  of  our 
history.  Without  them  success  in  that  war,  and  in  every 
other  war  of  the  country  would  be  impossible.  In  the  war 
between  the  states  it  was  the  women  of  the  South  who  as- 
sisted and  aided  the  soldiers  of  the  South  during  those  four 
long  years,  when  oftentimes  amidst  disaster  and  defeat  the 


15 


indomitable  spirit  of  the  South  refused  to  succumb  and  sent 
out  fresh  thousands  of  her  sons  to  die  upon  a  hundred 
battlefields  for  a  lost  cause,  yes,  lost  forever,  but  living-  and 
cherished  in  its  undying  memories  in  the  hearts  of  the  people 
of  the  Southland;  and  when  the  Civil  War  was  over  it  was 
the  women  of  the  South  who  raised  before  the  manhood  of 
the  South  a  nobler  standard  and  spanned  the  horizon  with 
a  bow  of  .promise,  and  it  is  the  women  of  the  South  who 
with  unchanging  devotion  upon  each  succeeding  tenth  of 
May  come  with  love  and  music  to  scatter  roses  over  our 
heroic  dead.  And  so  in  the  War  of  the  Revolution  the 
women  of  the  Cape  Fear  Section  of  North  Carolina  stood 
side  by  side  with  their  husbands  and  fathers  and  brothers 
in  defense  of  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the  Colonies.  No 
words  I  can  utter  can  fitly  eulogize  the  women  of  the  Revo- 
lution. They  were  bold,  patient,  loving,  long-suffering  and 
brave.  They  defied  the  British  and  manifested  a  spirit  with- 
out fear,  nerving  the  hearts  of  the  men  of  the  Revolution  to 
strive  for  independence. 

It  was  the  women  of  Eden  ton,  North  Carolina,  who  re- 
fused to  drink  tea  because  it  was  taxed  by  the  British  Par- 
liament. It  was  Mrs.  Ashe,  a  North  Carolina  woman,  who, 
when  the  British  officer  Tarleton  ridiculed  Col.  William 
Washington  and  said  he  was  so  ignorant  that  he  could  not 
write  his  name,  promptly  retorted :  "At  least,  Col.  Tarleton, 
you  must  admit  that  Col.  Washington  knows  how  to  make 
his  mark."  Whereat  Col.  Tarleton  flushed  with  anger  be- 
cause he  bore  upon  his  face  the  mark  of  the  sword  of  Col. 
Washington.  Finally  it  was  Mary  Slocumb,  whose  name  is 
inscribed  upon  yonder  beautiful  monument  of  Italian  marble, 
who  upon  this  battlefield  of  Moore's  Creek  nursed  the 
wounded  and  dying  soldiers  after  a  night  ride  of  sixty-five 
miles  from  her  home  without  an  escort.  All  honor  to  her 
and  her  descendants  and  to  every  heroic  woman  of  the 
Revolution  and  to  their  descendants,  and  the  noble  women  of 


16 


this  day  and  time  who  reside  in  the  Cape  Fear  Section  of 
North  Carolina,  who  would  now  do  and  dare  as  she  did  on 
that  terrible  night  ride  of  1776. 

No  monuments  of  stone  or  marble  can  express  our  full 
appreciation  of  these  brave  men  and  women  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, and  their  memories  are  enshrined  in  our  hearts,  and  as 
we  assemble  each  year  around  these  monuments  let  us  cherish 
the  memory  of  their  noble  deeds  and  their  heroism,  and 
preserve  for  all  coming  generations  of  the  noble  people  who 
inhabit  Pender  County  and  Cape  Fear  Section  of  North 
Carolina,  the  history  of  their  lives  and  their  glorious  achieve- 
ments in  the  cause  of  American  independence.  They  helped 
to  lay  the  foundation  of  the  greatest  Government  upon  which 
the  sun  shines. 


"Nor  shall  their  glory  be  forgot 
While  Fame  the  record  keeps ; 

And  Honor  marks  the  hallowed  spot, 
Where  Valor  proudly  sleeps." 


,    -     '^m 


I 


illinium 

00032701755 

FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 
THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


